Arab Spring: Cause and Effect How the Arab Spring has failed to liberate the Arab World For many years, the Arab world has been under brutal conflicts with some degenerating into civil war. Although North Africa had had its fair share of revolt, the Middle East is undoubtedly the epicentre of Arab strife that has spilled over to many states that are not Islamic. In Africa, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Morocco, and Algeria have all had a tethered past marred by civil strife and terrorism. Perhaps the propensity to revolutions and religious extremism that has rocked the Middle East for years has left more damage than the benefits it has brought (The Economist, 2014). In as much the Arab Spring has brought some impact into the governance system of many Islamic nations, it has failed in many ways to liberate the nations from authoritarianism and bad governance.
According to The Economist (2014) Arab Spring has failed to liberate North African and Middle East states from totalitarianism, as many of the newly elected leaders follow the exact footsteps of their predecessors. It has led to the narrowing of the democratic state of the Islamic nations because the Islamic fundamentalists cannot tolerate dissenting opinions. Additionally, corruption and infringement of the rights of the citizens have since increased, especially in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.
Contrary to its intended mission of bringing peace and uniting all Muslims living in the Islamic States, the Arab Spring has ignited fresh conflicts and terrorism in such states. The effect of this is that more than 300, 000 people have dies in Syria since 2011 when the war erupted. Sectarian interests have been the cornerstone behind numerous conflicts that have wreaked havoc in the Middle East with the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) gaining the impetus to fight the Jihad war in Iraq (The Economist, 2014).
In conclusion, the Arab Spring has had many adverse effects in North African states and the Middle East States. The Arab revolution has had many spill-over effects with many terrorist groups gaining momentum from the conflicts. For example, Al Qaeda has expanded its territory to many parts of the Middle East with Iraq being the hot spot. In addition, the Arab Spring has brought more divisions and deaths due to civil wars and continuous terrorist attacks (The Economist, 2014).
References
The Economist (2014). Tethered by history: The failures of the Arab spring were a long time in the making. Retrieved from http://www. economist. com/news/briefing/21606286-failures-arab-spring-were-long-time-making-tethered-history
